FREQUENTLY

Asked Questions

UKSG are an MCS (microgeneration certification scheme) accredited PV installer. Once we have completed the work you can start your SEG application.

Most licensed energy suppliers are obliged to offer SEG tariff.

Mandatory SEG Licensees

  • British Gas
  • E (Gas & Electricity)
  • E.ON
  • EDF
  • Octopus Energy
  • OVO Energy
  • Scottish Power
  • Shell Energy
  • So Energy
  • The Utility Warehouse
  • Utilita

Voluntary SEG Licensees

  • Pozitive Energy
  • Rebel Energy

Currently the highest rates are offered by:

  • Octopus – fixed rate 15p per every kWh of exported energy or flexible rate ranging between 8 to 17p per kWh
  • Scottish Power – 12p per kWh
  • British Gas – 15p per kWh for British Gas electricity customers (6.4p per kWh for anyone)

You can either sell the panels for a small profit or if they have already paid for themselves you can use them as a bargaining tool. Alternatively you can keep the Feed-in Tariff.

You will still receive payments but your tenants will receive the energy benefits.

Each system is different and most companies offer a payback within 10 years but because of our prices we can offer payback sometimes within 4 years offering 14 years of pure tax free profit for a well sited PV system on a property with high energy consumption.

For more information, view our Breakeven Chart here.

The production is pro-rata and will produce less in the winter depending on the weather, the hours of sunlight and the azimuth of the sun to the angle of the panels.

Unfortunately the inverters have to shut off automatically during a power cut. This protects engineers on the grid from an electric shock being fed back from the panels.

You will produce more than you need but this is where the payments subsidise your production and export.

No!

More often than not we use all black panels which are much subtle. Panels are becoming more commonplace every day with nearly 2% of the population with Solar Panels.

More than 10m2 will allow for a 6 panels to be fitted but the maximum is not limited.

You do not need planning permission unless you live in a listed building or are in an area of outstanding national beauty and even then planning permission can still be granted.

Our online quote provider will help you determine the exact potential but generally the more south and more southerly facing the panels the better.

Yes, the optimum direction for your panels to face is in a southern direction but East/West facing produces a good spread of electricity throughout the day.

The framework and panels are designed to withstand the most ferocious of storms.

Both of these types of panels do exist. At UK Solar Generation however we only fit solar panels that lay on top of your roof as they are more cost effective. The solar tiles are generally only used if your roof needs replacing or for new build projects.

Large systems can take up to 3 days but generally only 2.

Single people in small energy efficient houses might only use a 1kW at a time but a larger system is often more beneficial due to the economies involved on the installation process as every kWp is paid for at the feed-in tariff rate regardless of the use.

The design of the mounting brackets assures that the system won’t affect the integrity of your roof. In fact having solar panels may increase your roofs longevity by shielding it from the elements.

Solar panels are designed so that any dirt or dust will wash off when it rains so it is unlikely that your panel efficiency will be affected by dirt. In extreme cases it has been shown that panels can lose up to 10% of their efficiency due to dust.

The solar panels we provide have a warranty of 25-years, but have been show to last much longer with some still working over 40-years. It is estimated that performance will decrease by under 1% per year, which would mean that in 50 years they’d still be 60% efficient, but nobody really knows past the guarantees given.

If they are at a steep enough angle (>20 degrees) they do not need cleaning as our panels are self cleaning if installed at an angle greater than this.